See you at the bottom of the page. There will be a note. :^)

~The Plan (Part 2)~

~o0O0o~

It was obvious to the duo that this town wasn't a good town. The houses were made of clay and sand, piling to look like domes. They were close together and some of them were obviously abandoned. Natsu noticed how many of the civilians laid out on the street; some staring into space while others laid face down. The town was dark save for some street lamps and house lights. Natsu and Lucy gawked at the black castle located at the back of the city that loomed over it like an evil shadow. As he continued through town, he noticed the hungry glares of the townspeople. It was obvious: He was not welcome and should leave. 'This town looks awful.' He glanced at the castle in the distance. 'And I think I know who's fault it is.' He looked down at Lucy. Her rags were completely soaked through again, but she had put on a determined face as they walked together down the street. They wanted to get to a hospital so Lucy could get properly bandaged and cared for. Lucy got the attention of an elderly woman.

"Excuse me miss, can you point me to the nearest hospital." She asked. The woman looked her up and down, stopping at Lucy's soaked bandages for a second, and then cackled evilly. She pointed a skinny, crooked finger in a direction and continued on her path, all the while laughing. The duo looked at each other with confused looks but didn't press it. These people were not in a good state of mind. They went in the direction the woman pointed them to. Five minutes later, the two stopped harshly. Before them stood a dark, crumpling building that had been ransacked and left for ruins. Apparently, there was no hospital. The people couldn't afford to pay for it. Natsu felt a small touch on his arm. He looked down at a small, shriveled little girl. She hugged her cloak closer to her body and pointed a pale, skinny finger towards a small hut a few blocks away. Then the girl continued on her way.

"Wait!" He called for the girl. He reached into his sack that hung at his side for the apple he had been saving. He tossed it to the little girl who gave him a wide smile. Lucy gave a small smile at the scene.

"Thank you!" The little girl squeaked as she scampered away. Natsu walked up to the beaten hut and knocked on it t. The door cracked open harshly and a brown eye peeked out. Seeing the two, the person quickly shut the door. A series of clicks could be heard and the door opened fully this time, revealing a woman in her mid-40s with pale, red hair and wearing a brown smock. She grabbed Natsu by his collar and pulled him into the hut. Natsu rose a brow in question and opened his mouth to speak.

"Shush." The woman said.

"But I didn't-"

"Shush!" The woman snapped as she led him deeper in the home. The team looking again at each other with confusion in their eyes. He opened his mouth to speak again.

"Shush!" The woman again said. "Follow me please into the kitchen." The woman went through another door into another room. It was a very small kitchen. A brown, rickety table was squeezed into the center with deteriorating brown chairs to match. The sand-colored walls were cracked and the cupboards didn't look like they held any food. The woman jerked her head to two of the chairs. "Sit." She said. Following her directions, Natsu and Lucy carefully sat in their chairs. It squeaked under his weight. Lucy suppressed a smile. The woman raced to another door in the rooms and shut it tight. Then she went over to the windows and peeked through on of the torn curtains. She shut those as well. The woman sat down across from the two, putting her hand in her pocket. Then she put it on the table.

"Welcome to my humble home, Dragon Slayer and Heartfillia." The woman said. Natsu again rose a brow.

"And who might you be?" He asked the woman.

"My name is Shimai, and I have a plan."

~o0O0o~

In the darkness of the cell, the red-headed warrior spotted her necklace blinking. She smiled.

'Good. We won't have to wait much longer.' She thought to herself. The blinking was a signal to the guild. They now have about 24 hours before the plan goes underway.

~o0O0o~

"So," Shimai said as she finished, "Are you up for the job?" Lucy looked at Natsu with a hard look, then nodded at Shimai with a determined look in her eyes.

"The plan sounds easy enough." Natsu grunted. Lucy could tell he was itching to get started.

"As Erza said, it sounds easier said then done." Shimai replied. She then stood up and exited the kitchen. "Go ahead and make yourselves at home, you don't want to waste money on the crappy inn." She said as she left. The two followed her into the living room. Shimai had gone into a closet and had gotten some blankets and pillow. She grinned warily at the duo. She put some of the blankets down on the couch.

"Sorry you two. I only have one other bed and it's really small. I bet only Lucy here will fit in it." Lucy glanced smugly at the pink-haired boy. Shimai led Lucy away to the guest bedroom. "There you are. Be sure to was up before dinner." Shimai said. Lucy smiled warmly.

"Of course." Shimai left her in the tiny room. Shimai was right; the bed would be wide enough for her, but almost not tall enough. She sighed and left to wash up for dinner.

The dinner consisted of a slice of bread and vegetable soup. Natsu slurped his soup down in one gulp. Afterwards, he looked mad at himself for eating it in one gulp, for there was not enough for all of them. Lucy rolled her eyes and slid her bowl over to him. Which he greedily slurped down as well. Shimai finished her dinner quietly and got up from the table. She grabbed their bowls as well and put them in the sink. She sighed.

"Alright you two. You best be off to bed. We have to wake up early tomorrow. Goodnight." She said as she exited. Natsu grunted his thanks while Lucy said thanks. Lucy turned to look at Natsu.

"Goodnight Natsu." She said.

"Night Luce." He replied. He then followed her out of the kitchen…

and down the hall….

and into the guest bedroom. Lucy narrowed her eyes at her team mate.

"What do you think you're doing?" She seethed. Natsu looked at her dumbly.

"Going to bed." He replied. Lucy sighed.

"You're sleeping on the couch remember?"

"But I don't want to sleep on the couch! It's too small and I want to be near you!" He whined. Lucy's cheeks held a pink tint but it quickly disappeared.

"But the bed is too small for you to!" Lucy said. Natsu whined some more as she pushed Natsu towards the door. "Goodnight Natsu." She grunted as she closed the door in his face. Natsu grumbled as he headed to the small couch. He knew he wasn't going to get any sleep tonight.

~o0O0o~

Lucy didn't know it was possible, but it seemed to get hotter throughout the night under her thin blanket. She was able to fall asleep, but as she was waking up, the heat was uncomfortable. She shrugged her shoulders. 'At least it's not cold.' She thought to herself as she snuggled more into the covers. A warm breath blew onto her neck. She shivered slightly. She opened her eyes groggily. Out of the corner of her eye, in the darkness, she could see a tuft of pink hair. She growled dangerously. Natsu flung his arm over Lucy, pulling her closer, and mumbling into her hair.

"Five more minutes." It sounded like. Lucy's face had flush a deep red and squeaked in embarrassment. She then furrowed her eyebrows together in anger. The bed was obviously too small for the both of them. It creaked with every breath Natsu took. How they both fit under the blanket was some sort of miracle. Lucy tried to roll off of the bed but Natsu's grip held fast. Lucy grumbled in annoyance. Then Natsu's hand subconsciously moved lower on her abdomen. That was the final straw as Lucy used all of her strength to lurch from the bed. She shrieked while doing so, causing Natsu to sit upright on the bed in a groggy state.

"Lucy? What's wrong?" He asked tiredly. All he got in response was a slap. "Why the hell did you do that for?" He yelled at her.

"Maybe I wouldn't have to if you weren't being a perv and sneaking into my bed!" She quipped back. There was a quiet knock on the door. Then Shimai walked in.

"Good. I see that both of you are up. Let's get you some breakfast and get started on the plan, shall we?" She said as she pulled out a small-wooden chest from her smock. She opened it to the two and revealed a small golden necklace shaped like the sun.

~o0O0o~

Alright there you go. Here's a longer chapter for ya. Or at least longer than the last one. XD. But I hope you're enjoying it, even with my writers block making it hard for me. I only feel like my writings getting worse and I apologize for that. But I have everything written down for how I want this story to go down. So all I have to do is type it up.

Also, sorry to disappoint but I do not have a summer schedule. (I'm surprised with myself for updating today.) The schedule is: Whenever the next chapter is written up. Again, all my ideas are written down. I just have to poorly type them down. XD But the wait shouldn't take longer than a week. (For I am in a different state and have brief wifi situations.

Sorry for any mistakes. (I didn't proofread because of the limited wifi.)

I hope you're enjoying. And have an awesome summer!

:^)